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OPINION

Let's make history by fighting COVID-19

Our nation is in the midst of a crisis few generations have experienced.

We have lived our lives until recently with a false sense of security that medicine existed to cure every illness, that we could live consequence-free lives unconcerned with our effect on others. We have become a fractured society obsessed with division over demographics and politics.

Fear is the emotion of the times. We fear for our loved ones, jobs, homes and ourselves. Handshakes have been replaced with elbow bumps and happy hours with homeschooling. Spring is typically the season of rebirth, but many are experiencing it looking outside their living room window as if still in depths of winter.

Dan Johnson(Photo: Submitted photo)

Previous generations have faced their own challenges. Our founders faced an oppressive world superpower, a later generation waged war brother against brother, others faced down segregation, communism during the Cold War and recovery after the attacks on the World Trade Center.

During these times, fear, frustration and despair were also the emotions of their time. But the spirit of a united America found a way to place our flag during the Revolutionary War, to heal wounds and rebuild the south after the Civil War, to win civil rights in the halls of Congress, to see the Berlin Wall fall in Germany and to build the Freedom Tower in New York.

It is now our turn to answer the call of history. Our brightest minds are creating new COVID-19 tests which has lowered the time to get results from days to minutes. Medical workers are developing methods and devices to use one respirator on two patients should it be needed.

Our researchers are developing cutting edge treatments and a vaccination at record breaking speeds. Our corporations are switching to produce vital lifesaving medical devices and protective gear. Our president is cutting unneeded restrictions rushing current medicines to doctors for testing in sick patients.

But that’s not all, our healthcare workers are working long hours preparing for worse care scenarios on little sleep. Our unemployment office workers are processing applications at record volume to bring peace to laid off employees. Our first responders are tending to patients which may be putting their own lives at risk.

Citizens are ordering from struggling restaurants to support their neighbor’s businesses in times of uncertainty. Truck drivers are running extra hours to get needed respirators to high demand areas and food to our stores. Grocery store employees face their anxiety of working with larger lines of people to assure food is on every table and restocking shelves. Teachers are still teaching through online programs, bringing some normalcy to our children’s lives and a smile to their faces.

Many Americans are finding ways to work from home, while helping their kids with school district distance learning. Even our politicians found compromise to assure American families they wouldn’t lose their house and to keep businesses as stable as possible.

It’s easy to go home and get depressed seeing the latest confirmed cases and deaths on the news networks. However, while we all share the pain of those who are losing loved ones, we must also recognize the best in our nation is also on display in these challenging times.

This is our time to leave our mark on history. We make these sacrifices not to protect ourselves, but to protect our society’s most vulnerable. One day, our children’s children will read in their textbooks about the period we overcame fear, helped one another in a time of uncertainty. A time when pundits on television wrote off our nation’s economy, however we rebuilt it.

I call on every citizen to do your part in helping us through this time together. You can have children call their grandparents to put a smile on their face, give blood to the Red Cross, be patient with teachers as they meet unexpected troubleshooting with schools or purchase food from a local restaurant.

We will beat COVID-19 and emerge a stronger and more united people. While we don’t yet know the hour it will happen, Americans have a history of rising to the demand in challenging times. We will lead the world and when that day comes, and the fear has passed, we will realize we are a stronger nation than ever before. We will realize nothing is beyond our ability to conquer it.

This is the opinion of Times Writers Group member Dan Johnson, a Sauk Rapids resident and chairman of the Benton County Republican Party. His column is published the first Thursday of the month. He can be contacted at bentongopchair@yahoo.com.